The primary function of a wedding ceremony is to provide the bride and groom an opportunity to make promises to one another. These promises form the basis of their marriage and give officiating clergy the right to declare them husband and wife. The main purpose of a wedding ceremony is for the couple to pledge their love and devotion to one another, so that the minister can legally declare them husband and wife based on the vows they just exchanged. It is essential that any promises made result in a happy and secure marriage if they are kept.
These promises should be reaffirmed and clarified throughout the ceremony for the benefit of the guests. A wedding is also a time to celebrate marriage, which may last for a week or more in some cultures, with the couple's parents (or the couple) supporting the luxurious lives of friends and family while they're still partying. Marriage is an intimate union and equal partnership of a man and a woman, created by God so that they could become one body and be fertile and multiply (see Genesis, chapters 1 and 2). Although men and women are equal as children of God, they have been created with important differences that allow them to give themselves and receive each other as a gift.
Many of those who attend weddings find themselves re-committing to one another when the purpose of the ceremony is clarified. Marriage has two equal purposes: the growth of mutual love between spouses (unitive) and the generation and education of children (procreative). Permanence, exclusivity, and fidelity are essential to marriage because they promote and protect these two purposes.
